Michael Garber
Forum Replies Created
-
[Simon Ubsdell] “This also got me thinking about how we need to view the relationship between video and audio clips in terms of timecode – in FCP7 we could look at the timecode overlay and see the source code for everything at a glance and in comparison with other tracks (so much better than the Media Composer system where you could only see a very limited amount at a time). There doesn’t seem to be any provision for this kind of thing as yet. For me it’s pretty crucial unfortunately.”
Yes, I agree. The timecode integration is rather poor at this stage. CTRL-P to change code? No way. Why can’t I just type in the code? Don’t like extra steps for crucial steps in workflow. Also, I *need* a way to show viscode on the clip in the viewer (and hopefully, eventually, the client monitor). Do you know of a way at this time?
Just now, I was looking under the metadata editor to see if I could find a way to modify timecode on a clip and I couldn’t.
In this particular situation, I recorded VO using Pro Tools. I always take handwritten timecode notes on the sides of the paragraphs and circle the takes. I send the AIF to FCP and create a timeline with the timecode starting at 0. However, after I recorded the VO, I noticed after the VO session that my TC in the Pro Tools timeline was set to 15:10:02:00. Not sure how or why but it just… was.
Anyway, no big deal in the FCP 7 world. Just modify the sequence TC that I use for my VO selex and we’re in business. It’s quick. It’s a workaround for not having TC in the AIFF file and it just works. Not so with FCP X. Timecode is at 0. Project timecode is at 0. There are no options that I can find otherwise.
Again, since this is all for the sake of testing, no worries. But just more fuel for the “it’s not ready yet” fire.
Also, this is interesting, my old method for selecting VO was to create 2 tracks in the timeline. I put the entire VO track on V2 and when I find a select I like, blade it and move it to V1.
In FCPX however, I can manually drag a clip up to the “Upper” layer. However, when I hit the keystroke Command-Option-Up Arrow, the clip actually moves the “Lower” layer! Hilarious. I never knew an NLE could be funny ;).
-
Yeah, that’s the real burning question, indeed! Wacky.
-
Thanks. I’m currently cutting a news piece for PBS on FCP 7 but mirroring my edit in FCPX to see how my workflow would change. My requirements for final output are: channel 1 needs to be SOT, etc… and channel 2 is VO. Original footage is 4 channel with 1 and 3 being camera audio and 2 and 4 being interview.
I’ll try your recommends and report back.
-
That is worrying, indeed. I tried selecting all those radio buttons and none of them came up in the info panel. Pixel ratio included. Just keep repeating my mantra: it’s really a beta. it’s really a beta.:D
-
Ok, so figured out the way to turn channels on and off. That will help immensely. But how do I mix and pan the remaining channels? If I double-click on a clip, it drops down only a single track mono mix of the tracks. I can break apart the clip, but then they lose their connection to the video. Can’t seem to find a way to re-connect them. Maybe another way to mix?
-
Sure! Here’s all my steps. Select the clip and go to the inspector. Click on info. It’ll probably say “basic view” down at the bottom. Select edit metadata views and it’ll pop up a lengthy list of metadata options. It’s there under Aspect Ratio Info. As I mentioned, though, if you check it, nothing pops up in the view mode. I even tried making a special view mode with only Aspect Ratio selected and nothing popped up.
Just got the AJA X driver installed on 10.6.8 and 64-bit mode. More tests to come.
-
Thanks, Simon! That will come in handy. Good to know that you can change the audio from the timeline because that could get very frustrating if you lose audio tracks.
I’m starting to kind of get the overall idea behind FCPX – it’s all about the metadata. So, instead of dealing with turning off an audio track in the timeline (which I know you technically could do), it’s more about dealing with switches and flags in order to keep i things organized and in check.
I discovered the Metadata Editor last night and found a setting in there for Aspect Ratio. Unfortunately, it doesn’t show up after you select it. I was able re-export from separate timelines in FCP7 so the flag was turned on.
With markers, I was able to figure out how to manually make one a specific duration. However, it crashed the program! 😉 This is all hilarious. I really wish they had just called this a beta. In fact, that’s now how I’m thinking about it (and it magically makes everything “better”;). Once I started thinking of it in terms of troubleshooting and not being read-for-primetime, it kind of made me more interested in seeing how it works (or could potentially work). I just wish Apple had told us that, but moving on…
I’m starting to wonder if markers are just not the way to log footage. Starting to learn about smart collections – maybe that’s the answer? I’ve read about selecting sections of the media and doing something. Anyway, I’ll be researching that today.
[Simon Ubsdell] “It does annoy me a great deal that it’s got a kind of “slinky” dynamic behaviour that is obviously meant to be cool and funky but actually slows you down quite a bit, especially when you expect the playhead to move instantly.”
I’ve been reading all the myriad blogs and posts that have been popping up and I see now how AV Foundation is a big part of FCPX. My guess is that the strange behaviour of the program is partially due to the need for Lion, which should be AVF ready. Also, I’m going to try to boot my system into 64-bit mode today. That might make some things run smoother. If you are on 10.6.8, that’s the only way to get the beta AJA driver to work.
-
Thanks! 🙂
-
Kevin, you make a good point! We all should know both systems.
-
It’s not a deal-breaker. More of a “why isn’t this a feature, yet?” Plus, we’re well into the project with FCP.
Thanks for the recommend, though. It does seem that Avid has the only answer here.